Georgian journalist released from administrative detention after 48 hours

Saba Sordia, a journalist for the online magazine Indigo, who was arrested on charges of disobeying police orders, has been released from administrative detention.  The prosecution, however, is still seeking to issue an administrative fine against him.

Tbilisi City Court judge Zviad Tsekvava announced at Tuesday’s hearing that the final decision in the case will be delivered on 17 April.

Sordia was detained on Sunday in the street in Tbilisi by law enforcement officers after they checked his identity and searched his bag. On Monday, his detention was extended from 24 hours to the maximum of 48 hours.

The local civil rights group Social Justice Centre (SJC) stated that police detained Sordia in the area surrounding the Marjanishvili metro station.

According to the SJC, after checking his ID, the police also asked Sordia to open his bag, which he complied with, but an argument ensued when the police tried to open another pocket of the bag — which Sordia said he would do himself.

‘This argument led to the detention of Saba Sordia; [...] According to Saba, the police did not explain to him on what grounds they were detaining him, nor that he was being detained administratively. He was only told about this after being transferred to the department’, the statement read.

The Interior Ministry said that Sordia was administratively detained for disobeying the lawful request of a police officer.

Sordia’s lawyer from SJC stated that police officers threatened to break the journalist’s GoPro camera and used homophobic language towards him because of his earring.

The SJC added that recently, there have been particularly frequent reports of mass searches of citizens by the police on the streets and in public places.

Sordia’s detention was condemned by the local Media Advocacy Coalition, which viewed the incident in the broader context of the ruling party’s targeting of media organisations and media workers.

‘This is a deliberate tactic to create a deterrent effect on media freedom and intimidate other journalists’, the organisation said on Monday.